Remember when Donald Trump and Ted Cruz were bitter enemies? When Trump suggested that Cruz’s father played a role in the Kennedy assassination, or when Trump poked fun at Heidi Cruz’s appearance? How about when Trump coined the term “Lyin’ Ted”? Well, out political activist Antonio Arellano remembers.…
It was 1988 and the AIDS crisis had not yet peaked. The future was uncertain and frankly, terrifying. While some might freeze when faced with such unimaginable adversity, others organize. Houston owes it to the minds of those like Tori Williams, who, in 1988, helped conceptualize Halloween Magic. What began as a dinner party in the late 1980s would grow into a large theatrical production in the early 1990s—an endeavor that has since raised over $1 million toward fighting HIV/AIDS…
When large activist movements take the national stage, we tend to think of places like Washington, D.C., Berkeley, California, or, in terms of the LGBTQ equality movement, Stonewall in New York. More than likely, Houston, Texas isn’t the first city you think of as being on the front lines of activism. While a healthy 22,000 protesters took to the streets of Space City during the 2017 Women’s March following Donald Trump’s election, this number paled in comparison to New York…
When I was a kid, I wanted to be a veterinarian. After that, I wanted to be a teacher. I even thought I might be a theatre dramaturg or production assistant for a while. But life didn’t pan out that way for me—I didn’t find my true passion of writing until adulthood. Others, like out fashion designer Nicholas Nguyen, have had their eyes on the prize from day one. “When I was a kid, I used to go into my…
Out playwright Emilio Rodriguez is from everywhere and nowhere. His youth was spent all over the United States, as his father’s position in the military uprooted the family every few years. He shares experiences with so many—but his roots are nowhere to be found.…
We wouldn’t be the first, second, or even third to use the word “intrepid” when describing the work produced by Serenbe Playhouse. The small professional theatre company, located about 30 miles southwest of Atlanta, performs all of its productions on a large expanse of acreage attached to The Inn at Serenbe. Founded in 2009, the playhouse has made a name for itself within the Georgia theatre scene, garnering national attention and press for its bold new works and reimagined classics…
Sex, drugs, and the gays of Houston. Just a few characters in the zephyr of cynicism, sarcasm, and witty one-liners that makes up author Anthony Ramirez’s third book, Less Than Butterflies. Ramirez, editor-in-chief of About magazine, comes clean—as clean as he can—in the autobiography, exploring his life as it was dragged through the underbelly of Houston’s raunchy gay scene. The book jumps from Montrose to Washington Heights, Midtown to Third Ward, and never a dull moment between them.…
Steve Grand was riding the effervescent high of 2015’s All-American Boy when he realized that introspection would be the key to his follow-up. The country-pop aesthetic of his freshman album had him pegged by the media as America’s newest gay country icon, but Grand demurred. Though he considers himself a fan of country music, he doesn’t think of himself as a country artist. “Music is subjective,” Grand says. “That is part of the whole point. The lines of life are…
Since the reboot premiered on Netflix in 2018, Queer Eye has garnered nearly unanimous praise for its inclusive nature, loveable hosts, and expansive base of people the Fab Five seeks to help. Set in Georgia, the second iteration of the early-2000s Queer Eye for the Straight Guy has ditched its “straight guy” base and made over the lives of a woman, a gay man, and perhaps most notably, a trans man. Skyler Jay is a Georgia native, and if you…
Times are tough. How many times a day do you envision taking an indiscriminate exit on the highway and seeing where it takes you? And then the next turn. And the next. And the next. Next thing you know, it’s been nine days and you’ve driven to Massachusetts.…
